Arash Zeini

Tag: Zoroastrianism

  • New review

    The Abstracta Iranica website has published a new review of my book. This one is by Benedikt Peschl:
    Peschl, Benedikt. 2021. Arash Zeini. Zoroastrian scholasticism in Late Antiquity. The Pahlavi version of the Yasna Haptaŋhāiti. Abstracta Iranica 42-43 (5).
    The paperback will be out in May 2022.

    Part II contains the newly established text of the Pahlavi YH (in transcription) together with an English translation. The text-critical edition (in transliteration) and apparatus are included in an appendix. This edition of the Pahlavi YH must be considered the new reference point for any future work involving the text.

    From the review, par. 4

    Since the discussions refer to a wide range of related passages in the wider realm of Pahlavi literature, the book will be essential to consult not only for those working on other parts of the Zand, but also those engaged with Pahlavi literature in general.

    From the review, par. 5

  • “They Helped Build Modern India but Are Shrinking as a People”

    The New York Times has an article on Parsis’ involvement in building modern India and their dwindling numbers. Access it here.

    Parsis have supported many of the country’s institutions and nurtured business and the arts. But their numbers have dwindled at an alarming pace.
    From the porch of his century-old home, Khurshed Dastoor has a front-row seat to a tragedy that he fears may be too late to reverse: the slow extinction of a people who helped build modern India.

  • The Roar of silence

    On 26 September, I presented François de Blois the Festschrift that Adam Benkato and I edited:

    Benkato, Adam & Arash Zeini (eds.). 2021. The roar of silence: A Festschrift in honour of François de Blois. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 31(3).

    The presentation took place at the Ancient India & Iran Trust in Cambridge a couple of days after François’s 73rd birthday. Here is my speech:

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  • Ritual and ritual text in the Zoroastrian tradition

    I have a new article in a volume I edited with Adam Benkato for the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society. More details on the volume will follow soon, but my article is already available on the Journal’s FirstView:

    Zeini, Arash. 2021. Ritual and ritual text in the Zoroastrian tradition: The extent of Yasna 41. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society.

    This article examines the extent of the concluding section (Y 41) of the Yasna Haptaŋhāiti in light of the manuscript evidence and the section’s divergent reception in a Middle Persian text known as the “Supplementary Texts to the Šāyest nē Šāyest” (Suppl.ŠnŠ). This investigation will entertain the possibility of an alternative ritual being described in the Suppl.ŠnŠ. Moreover, it argues that the manuscripts transmit the ritual text along with certain variations and repetitions while the descriptions of the extent of each section preserve the necessary boundaries of the text as a textual composition or unit.

  • Navrose and Nirang

    What’s life like for a Zoroastrian today? A short piece by Dina Katgara (@dinakatgara) published in The Daily Californian.
    دینا کاتگارا درباره زندگی به عنوان یک زرتشتی یا پارسی در عصر جدید.

    https://www.dailycal.org/2021/02/18/navrose-and-nirang-my-life-as-a-modern-zoroastrian/

  • On translation and exegesis

    The following text first appeared on the blog of the Edinburg University Press on 4 August 2020. The original is here. I am reproducing it here without any textual alterations except some minor formatting.

    Y 35 in manuscript J2 (1323 CE)
    Y 35 in manuscript J2 (1323 CE)

    On translation and exegesis in the Zoroastrian religious tradition

    Zoroastrianism, now a minority faith in Iran and India, is an Iranian religion with a complex textual transmission reaching back to the remote antiquity.

    The oldest layers of the surviving Zoroastrian texts are in Avestan language and commonly dated to the middle of the second millennium BCE. Exact dates and circumstances of composition, however, remain uncertain, so that little is known about the socio-political context from which these texts emerged. After two millennia of oral transmission, the texts were finally committed to writing, at a time when the language must have no longer been in active use.

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  • The Colaba Navjote

    The hindustantimes has another article on the Navjote I wrote about yesterday. This one provides a bit more information about other contentious Navjotes. And it briefly mentions gender disparity as one of the arguments that seems to be dividing the Parsi community:

    The issue has divided the community, with one section stating the children cannot be initiated into the faith because their father is of a different faith. On the other hand, reformist groups have called the older practice discriminatory towards women.

    hindustantimes

  • Who owns the good religion?

    Parsi Navjote

    Those acquainted with Zoroastrianism, at times called the Good Religion, and the Parsi community know of the heated debate that surrounds conversion. People often believe that today’s Zoroastrianism or the Parsi community do not allow or frown upon conversion into the religion. Another fiercely debated issue is the acceptance into the Parsi community of children from mixed marriages, particularly when the father is not a Zoroastrian.

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  • Zoroastrian Scholasticism in Late Antiquity

    It has been a great pleasure to work on the first proof of my forthcoming book, Zoroastrian Scholasticism in Late Antiquity, which will be published in the “Edinburgh Studies in Ancient Persia“, edited by Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones and published by the Edinburgh University Press, with the support of their fantastic editorial team at the EUP.

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  • Once more: Looking for Love!

    There is a documentary of 27 minutes on Zoroastrian/Parsi attempts of finding love through community events. The clip I posted previously is part of this radio documentary. You need to be registered and signed in to be able to listen to the documentary.

  • Looking for love!

    A short 3 minutes video by @BBCWorld on Zoroastrians, it seems mainly Parsis (no distinction made in the video), and the “World Zoroastrian Youth Congress” where the youth meet and connect in an attempt to preserve the growth of the community.

  • An autumn course in Zoroastrianism

    Pir-e Sabz, Zoroastrian pilgrimage site in central Iran. Photo: Courtesy of Kaiyan Mistree. Copyright: UiB.

    The University of Bergen (Norway) and the Shapoorji Pallonji Institute of Zoroastrian Studies at SOAS, University of London, offer this autumn (23–27 September 2019) a short course on Zoroastrianism. This free course takes place in Rome and offers international students an opportunity to immerse themselves in the study of this religion with its rich history. The course is taught by Sarah Stewart (SOAS) and Michael Stausberg (Bergen) who will be joined by Jenny Rose (Claremont). Application deadline is 24 June 2019.

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  • Ritual Matter(s): Nowruz Ceremonies of the Zoroastrian New Year in Tehran

    Another photo essay by Behrad Mistry, again from last year and over at the Ajam Media Collective.

    The Zoroastrian New Year coincides with the Spring Equinox. It marks not only the beginning of the calendar, but the renewal of life in its perennial struggle with death. This annual milestone is an occasion for celebration, and involves a series of ritual arrangements and acts.

    Source: Ritual Matter(s): Nowruz Ceremonies of the Zoroastrian New Year in Tehran – Ajam Media Collective

  • Zoroastrian Nowruz in Tehran: Celebrating the “Big Five” – Ajam Media Collective

    A commented photo essay from last year by Behrad Mistry over at the Ajam Media Collective.

    The following is a photo essay by Behrad Nafissi Mistry. Born into the caste of Zoroastrian priests, Behrad is half Indian Parsi, half Iranian and is currently training to also serve as a priest. Behrad is a photo-journalist at Amordad Zoroastrian News Agency and Humans of Tehran. He holds a B.A. in English Literature and an M.A. in Comparative Literature from Shahid Beheshti University. This series will focus on Tehran’s Zoroastrian community and their practices before, during, and after Nowruz.

    Source: Zoroastrian Nowruz in Tehran: Celebrating the “Big Five” – Ajam Media Collective

  • Reception of Islam in Iran

    Crone, Patricia. 2016. The Iranian reception of Islam: The non-traditionalist strands (Islamic History and Civilization 130). Collected Studies in Three Volumes. Vol. 2 edited by Hanna Siurua. Leiden; Boston: Brill.

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